Château de Compiègne, Compiègne, France

The Château de Compiègne is a royal residence built for Louis XV and restored by Napoleon. Compiègne was one of three seats of royal government, the others being Versailles and Fontainebleau. It is located in Compiègne in the Oise department and is open to the public.

Even before the chateau was constructed, Compiègne was the preferred summer residence for French monarchs, primarily for hunting given its proximity to Compiègne Forest. The first royal residence was built in 1374 for Charles V, and a long procession of successors both visited it and modified it. Louis XIV resided in Compiègne some 75 times.

In 1750, prominent architect Ange-Jacques Gabriel proposed a thorough renovation of the chateau. Work began in 1751 and was finished in 1788 by Gabriel's student Le Dreux de La Châtre. The ancient town ramparts dictated the château's triangular plan; the resultant building covers about 5 acres. It is Neoclassical in style, with simplicity and clarity governing both its external and interior features.

During the French Revolution, the château passed into the jurisdiction of the Minister for the Interior. In 1795 all furniture was sold and its works of art were sent to the Muséum Central; it was essentially gutted. Napoleon visited in 1799 and again in 1803. In 1804 the château became an imperial domain and in 1807 he ordered it be made habitable again. Architects Berthault, Percier and Fontaine, decorators Dubois and Redouté, and cabinetmakers Jacob-Desmalter and Marcion restored the château. Its layout was altered, a ballroom added, and the garden was replanted and linked directly to the forest.

The result is an example of First French Empire style (1808-1810), though some traces of the earlier décor survive. From 1856 on, Napoleon III and Eugénie made it their autumn residence, and redecorated some rooms in the Second Empire style.

Today's visitors can find three distinct museums within the chateau: the apartments themselves, the Museum of the Second Empire and the National Car Museum, founded in 1927, with a collection of carriages, bicycles, and automobiles.

References:

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User Reviews

Torsten Burandt (10 months ago)
Wonderful palace and parc, interesting museum.

Rhiannon Llewellyn (11 months ago)
Not great for children. The gardens are great and the chateau is beautiful but I would not recommend this to kids (apart from the gardens.) We had two audioguides (and I speak fluent French so was happy to read the signs) but found the information incredibly unengaging. This is a period of history I am not very familiar with, and I left having not been able to learn anything really. My husband had my small son (3) on his shoulders so he wouldn’t touch anything (as there is NOTHING for children to engage with while the adults are reading the tiny signs) - three members of staff came rushing up to us to tell us that this is forbidden. As pushchairs and slings are not permitted, we had to wrestle our three year old around the palace, trying to explain why he couldn’t touch anything - we go to museums and galleries every week and have never had this issue before. I also struggled to find the audioguide points in each room, so this was mostly useless. A couple of rooms had an audio guide for ‘jeunes’ which I thought my 5 year old would enjoy, but when I listened to them, they were incredibly dull. In short - the gardens are beautiful - the museum is well maintained and well staffed, but it is not a friendly or fun place for families. Pay your ticket entry and trot around, but don’t expect to really learn anything if you’ve got kids with you! Top tip - The museum at the Cloitres in the town is AMAZING! It’s totally free, the lady who was in charge was so friendly and sweet with the children. They had a booklet with lots of activities to do, which my 5 year old really enjoyed. Although the museum is tiny, we spent a very happy 90mins there and came away having learned loads ☺️

Théo Thomas (2 years ago)
A beautiful place. The park is definitely worth the detour

Michael Smith (Spike) (2 years ago)
I don't usually pay to go into castles as generally I'm happy enough with the outside. But this one was well worth the 10 Euros. Plus, the garden is amazing.

Laura Keciri (2 years ago)
Really beautiful inside and out! Loved visiting this rich castle in history and architecture and art!

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